"In the aftermath of the presentation of the United Nations Secretary General (UNSG) report on ‘Intensifying global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilation’ at the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), regional civil society networks combating female genital mutilation (FGM) welcome this important document as well as the UNGA resolution on FGM and reaffirm their commitment to scale up efforts to end this traditional harmful practice worldwide through increasing their cross-regional cooperation."

"Words conduct meaning, words shape narratives - they help us communicate, explain, discuss… a delicate matter,must be handled with sensitivity". Check out our NEW animation based on the Network position paper, 'How to Talk About FGM'.

"A clear message from the conference was that FGM is a global issue and therefore requires global action. To effectively tackle FGM on a global scale there is the need to develop three key things...." Read more of our Directors blog post on attending the recent international conference to end FGM hosted in Burkina Faso: "Galvanizing Political Action to Accelerate the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation by 2030."

On 19-21 November, End FGM EU took part in the International Conference on Female Genital Mutilation / Cutting (FGM/C): ‘Exploring strategies and good practices’ hosted in Barcelona by Wassu-UAB Foundation. The event was a unique opportunity to highlight the importance of addressing FGM in the context of asylum in Europe for an expert audience attending from all regions of the world.

On 27 November, the End FGM European Network, AIDOS and GAMS Belgium, supported by the UNFPA_UNICEF Joint Programme on FGM and the World Bank, organised an international stakeholder dialogue on ending Female Genital Mutilation. The theme chosen for the meeting was “Mainstreaming efforts to end Female Genital Mutilation". The meeting was attended by stakeholders from the public-, private- and CSO- sector, in Africa and Europe and other regions working towards the elimination of FGM. Participants had the opportunity to exchange with donors as the event was organised back to back with the FGM donors working group annual meeting.

"I was very happy to speak at the international stakeholder dialogue in Paris. It was a very enriching day in its exchanges and sharing experiences. Bravo and well done to all!"

"The 'mainstreaming efforts to end FGM' event in Paris was a great experience and very empowering to see the many powerful women and men fighting for the same cause. I've learned that we have to keep governments accountable, to look and see if they are applying the law or if the law against FGM is in their constitution.I was very honored to speak on one of the panels - a bit nervous during the speech- but I felt great after! The people were very nice and I got a lot of encouragement from participants"

"I had the opportunity to speak at the London Home Office conference on FGM and forced marriage. As a Youth Ambassador for the End FGM EU Network, I highlighted the importance of youth engagement in ending FGM. I met some truly inspirational figures such as Jaha Mapenzi Dukureh and Hoda M Ali. It was incredibly insightful, as I learned the importance of language when discussing FGM and the imperative grassroots work happening in communities abroad and locally"

Upcoming Event: 5 Years of the European Commission on FGM: "Taking stock & Looking ahead to the next 5 years"

On 25 November 2018 the EC Communication towards the elimination of female genital mutilation (FGM) (adopted on 25 November 2013) was five years old. The establishment of such an EU instrument was one of the main results of five years of efforts of the Amnesty International END FGM European Campaign. Five years later, and with the End FGM European Network continuing its legacy we want to take stock of the achievements so far and identify implementation gaps which will need to be addressed going forward.The event, will be hosted by the European Commission and will be a closed round table enabling a constructive reflection among EU institutions and agencies, Member States, the End FGM European Network and its members.

WATCH: Webinar 'Reporting on FGM'

In October, End FGM EU and its Member MIGS, hosted the webinar 'Reporting on FGM'. With input from previous Al Jazeera correspondent Fatma Naib, the objective of this webinar was to strengthen the understanding of the impact language can have with regards to perceptions around FGM and how insensitive wording can potentially reverse progress in the actions taken to end FGM. To read our position paper available in many languages, click here. To learn more on this subject visit UEFGM knowledge learning platform here.